Utaha stubbornly kept her head lowered and her back bent. Ever since her sudden rise and abrupt apology, she had remained in this posture.
However, judging from the slight trembling of her hands placed straight down at her sides, her heart was anything but as calm as she appeared.
Chisato and Eriri were both stunned as they looked at her.
It was just that the latter reacted faster than the former, quickly realizing the intention behind Utaha's sudden actions.
Backing out at the last moment… No, it was more like she wanted to preserve dignity for everyone involved.
And she was willing to sacrifice herself to do so.
Eriri clenched her teeth tightly, applying more and more pressure.
What the hell? Back then, you were the one complaining, saying you couldn't accept it.
And now, you're the one putting on a strong front, taking everything upon yourself, acting like some kind of savior, sacrificing yourself to make way for me?
Your actions are inconsistent, your words full of contradictions—just how twisted is your mind?
What a difficult person to understand…
"Um… Eriri?"
Sayuri, having finally come to her senses, quickly stood up, first helping Utaha to her feet.
Then, with an expression of deep confusion, she instinctively turned her gaze toward her own daughter.
Seeing the determined look in Utaha's eyes, Chisato also realized what she was trying to do.
To be honest, he had envisioned many possible scenarios on his way here—like Sayuri flying into a rage, slapping him across the face, furiously scolding him for being shameless, threatening to contact his parents…
But never had he expected that Utaha would suddenly jump in and use a near self-destructive method to resolve things between him and Eriri.
Chisato wanted to say something, but Eriri, sitting right beside him, subtly nudged him with her foot, signaling him to remain silent and leave the talking to her.
He could just step in if necessary.
Eriri stood up.
"Mom, I've thought a lot about what you said to me before. After that, I had a long talk with Kasumigaoka…"
"You shouldn't call a friend 'this person' like that. It's rude."
"…Anyway, I talked to Kasumigaoka for a long time. She admitted that everything she did before was for Chisato.
She really did want to take him away from me. But Chisato himself was completely unaware of any of this."
Eriri paused at just the right moment.
Utaha, as if embarrassed that her hidden thoughts had been exposed, awkwardly turned her head slightly, staring at the floor to the side.
Since things had already reached this point, there was no way they could let Utaha's sacrifice go to waste.
Chisato also played his part like a professional actor.
Under Sayuri's scrutinizing gaze, he awkwardly scratched his head, putting on an expression that suggested he had only just learned about all of this and was still struggling to accept it.
Sayuri didn't notice anything unusual. She simply turned her gaze back to her daughter, signaling her to continue.
"I talked with Kasumigaoka for a long time, almost the entire night without sleeping…"
"Oh, you mean that time a while ago, when you stayed at her house overnight instead of coming home?"
"Yeah, that time."
Eriri nodded naturally.
Utaha, whose face was turned away from Sayuri's field of vision, silently raised an eyebrow.
That night, this blonde, flat-chested girl had been making those shameful noises on a certain someone's bed until the middle of the night.
And now, she could lie with a straight face like this?
"That night, the two of us opened up to each other and talked about a lot of things. My view was that the past is the past.
Since Kasumigaoka has already admitted everything to me and sincerely apologized, then we should just let it go. Our relationship should return to the way it was before—simple as that."
Eriri's ability to improvise on the spot was monstrous. The moment she grasped Utaha's intent, she had already simulated the script in her head.
With her body language and facial expressions matching perfectly, even a professional actor witnessing this would have given her full marks.
Sayuri had no suspicions whatsoever and simply continued listening as Eriri "performed" her explanation.
"But Kasumigaoka is difficult. She wasn't satisfied with just leaving things at that.
No matter how much I told her that my mom isn't someone petty enough to hold grudges over these things, that her little tricks wouldn't work on you, and that you wouldn't be angry anyway—she just wouldn't feel at ease.
She insisted on coming over personally to apologize and obtain your forgiveness before she could move on."
Eriri shifted her gaze to Chisato and let out a small sigh.
"And as for Chisato… I felt that since he was one of the people involved, he couldn't remain ignorant about everything. He had to know the whole truth. So I called him over as well.
That's pretty much everything."
After Eriri had given a "detailed" explanation, the previously silent Utaha slowly followed up in a measured tone.
"Mr. Spencer, for all the lies I told before, motivated by my own selfish desires, I apologize to you once again. I understand that mere words are not enough.
So, as proof of my sincerity, and as compensation for having hurt you before, I am willing to do anything you ask of me."
"Ara~"
Sayuri, having understood the situation, now looked at Utaha, who was so seriously "repenting," and her maternal instincts flared up.
Both her expression and gaze softened to an extreme degree.
Three people tangled in a complicated yet youthful love story—among them, one had lost their way but had now returned, realizing their mistakes and sincerely trying to make amends.
This wasn't really that big of a deal.
But the fact that Utaha could be this honest and admit her faults, with such a sincere attitude, made Sayuri like her even more.
After all, even if she had once harbored such thoughts, they had never actually come to fruition.
And since she had apologized, an adult should show more tolerance toward children. Being overly petty would just be undignified.
"When I saw the three of you looking so serious just now, I was really scared! Honestly, I thought something major had happened. Turns out, it was just a false alarm."
Sayuri gently patted her chest, then placed her hands on Utaha's shoulders.
"You don't have to worry about whether I forgive you or not. Utaha-chan, you did hide some things from me before, but just like Eriri, I never blamed you for it.
So, don't feel guilty anymore. From now on, please continue being Eriri's friend as always, okay?"
"I understand. Thank you very much…"
With one final bow from Utaha, the situation came to a peaceful conclusion.
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50 advanced chapters on p@t re on (.) com/SenatusTheta
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